G&L ASAT Classic '52 Reissue

This is your basic G&L '52 reissue Telecaster I fully tested about a week ago.

All I have to say is that the sound is quite dull and lifeless in comparison with the real deal, even through a Koch, Engl, Marshall you name it. I wanted to test it because I heard some lovely things about these guitars. The neck pickup is too bassy, the treble pickup is too thin sounding. It doesn't compare to the Baja 52' reissue I played after it and the Baja is also a lot cheaper. Maybe there are better G&L's out there, but this one didn't sound like a real, good Tele should sound.

It played quite fast and slinky with low action, but there were too many buzzes on the fretboard and a few 'dead' spots I couldn't get rid of. Build quality was very nice obviously.

Yes, it's build to last with nice hardware and finish. I wouldn't use it for gigs though.

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I've owned a real '52 Fender Telecaster which was a far better guitar than this one. It was lighter in weight which is probably the reason why it sounded so great.

Buy yourself a Baja Tele, they're more consequent with choosing their woods and a lot cheaper too.

2007 G&L Asat Classic '52 reissue with Butterscotch Blonde finish, swamp ash body, hand rubbed gun-oil maple neck and fretboard. To my opninion there's no better looking guitar...

TRULY GREAT! When I first plugged in this guitar I really fell in love! Love at first sight.

When I got home I played it through the clean channel of my Engl Screamer and it was like heaven. No boomy bass, no thin sounding, ice-picky highs, no volume differences between the strings (also not when switching from the neck pickup to the bridge pickup)...all I could hear was a superb balanced, extremely clear and sweet sounding instrument. I don't know if I'm one of those lucky guys, but there are sweet spots everywhere accross the fretboard. The middle position is the greatest sound on earth. It nails 'Razorlight-America' or the classic 'Shocking Blue-Venus'...it all depends on the way you play it, but the Tele-sound is there for 100%. The neck pickup is very bluesy and thick sounding, the bridge pickup is more cutting without sounding thin or ice picky. Great match. I'll never swap the pickups.

Distorted it's ballsy with lots of attitude, great for blues/rock. You'll get some feedback and noise, but no squeel...it stays clear and open sounding. I don't mind about the feedback or noise as long as the sound is there and remember it pays a lot if you have a good right-hand technique to eliminate feedback. I don't see a lot of differences between humbuckers and these in terms of output...they can handle serious rock.

I can't comment on the factory set-up cause I can't remember! I strung it with Ernie Ball 10-46 gauge and it's great ever since. It plays very easy with low action and stays in tune well, especially if the strings are played-in for a few hours. It's a new guitar, so I expect things get even better with age.

Very well made, no issues. It's a real workhorse!

Never dealt with the company.

If this guitar was stolen or lost I'd be freaked out! I'd buy it again, but I don't think it would be that easy, since every guitar is different...(even 5 G&L's in Butterscotch Blonde finish would be all different from each other). It's impossible to have exactly the same guitar, because every piece of wood is unique.

This guitar has a real classic VIBE, you won't find it that easy in a 'new' guitar. I still can't get my hands of her! I'm playing in a band also (blues/rock/soul/rythm-lead) and it sounds great. This G&L became my number 1 guitar instead of my 87' Gibson Les Paul Standard and I new that from the very first touch!

I have no idea what year it is! It is a take on the 52 Tele, and I think it does it well. I am sure that all the features are covered in the previous posts. It is basic, and if that is what you are looking for, great guitar! If not, it'll suck hard!

I actually picked this up in a shop to check out a vintage Traynor Guitar Mate. I walked out with both! It has one of the most beautiful clean sounds I have ever heard. The bridge pickup is bright like you would expect on a 52 Tele, but there is just more power and drive in it. I got Gatton and Buchannan sounds right away. The neck pickup is also great sounding, darker, and more middle than the bridge which is normal for this type of guitar. Love the tones!
I play Blues, rock, country, Slide, and anything else you can think of, From Zepplin to Travis Tritt, to Ry Cooder and the White Stripes.
This git can get it done!

Well, it was setup great, considering where I bought it, so I figure the previous owner was a tech or it came from the factory like this. The neck fits the pocket tight, no gaps or spaces I can see. The tint is what you exoect. The butterscotch finish on the body is perfect. This git had nary a scratch on it, I doubt highly it was played much at all. Everything was as you would expect from a great git company.

I actually bought this to back up my Melancon Tele. I am now gonna use the Melancon for slide and open tunings and use the G&L for the standard stuff. I hope it looks like a 40 year old tele after a few years in the bars, nothing like a beat tele or strat! I am sure it will do fine in the long run

No warranty, I won't need it, I work on all my own stuff anyway!

I have been playing for a long time to sound as crappy as I do. I teach part time, and play in a cover band. I do think I would buy this again, it reminds me of the Hamer tele I let go a few years ago, one that I really wanted back. It plays great and sounds great, and the looks are a nice finish to the whole package. I have 13 other gits in the house, and really didn't have to have this one, but I played it and it was special, so I got it. I am not a huge fan of G&L, this is my first one, but maybe I have been missing out! I guess it'll go along with my Hamers and Robins well! Oh yeah, It was half the price of a reissue 52, which was also attractive.

See other reviews

My review echos the previous reviewer that descrbed a Fender and G&L side by side. The guitar I played was excellent sounding but in comparison with my tele it wasn't quite the same. The ASAT tone spectrum lies between my Fender. What I mean by this is, my Fender is both brighter and darker depending on which pickup you choose. The ASAT sounded great but didn't have near the bite or wouldn't get as dark as my guitar. Before comparing the two I was thinking about getting the ASAT and selling my tele. If I didn't already own a tele I would highlt recommend this guitar but I couldn't justify it as a replacement.

Great work, better then Fender.

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If I was in the market for a tele and I wanted adjustable saddles, good tone, (a little sweeter then most teles, perhaps it's the ceramic pickups) and good construction I would consider the G&L. Since I was going to possibly replace my Fender 52' reissue (with Kinman Broadcaster pickups and a Callaham bridge plate) I decided against it. My tele just has more range then the G&L, sometimes it's a bit bright but I usually just dial down the tone knob.

I found the best way to set these up the amp is dial it up a bit bright and roll off the tone control a little on the bridge pickup. When you go to the neck pickup bring the tone back up. This will help to keep the neck pickup from being muddy sounding.

2003, Butterscotch Blonde, tinted glossy neck, swamp ash body.
Beautifully finished

This is the 2nd G&L ASAT I purchased in 1 week!
I already own a Fender American Tele (white blond, over ash) and was originally shopping for a Fat Tele. I ended up purchasing a G&L Bluesboy, but was so smitten by the sounds on this guitar, I had to have it. Played through my Marshall DS401, this is an amazing guitar. G&L Pickups sound very defined and much different than P'ups on a 52RI Tele (not better, just different.

Absolutly suberb finish. No detectable flaws

Have owned many G&Ls before and I am sure this one will hold up fine

Never contacted G&L, so I have no comment.
Local dealer "Spotlight Music" is great. Rating is for dealer

After many years of playing and many types of guitars, I have finally come to realize that I am most comfortable with Les Pauls and Teles. That said, I currently own 2 Les Pauls (Standard and 56 Reissue Goldtop) and 3 Teles (ASAT 52, ASAT Bluesboy, Fender American Tele). G&Ls are great values in American made guitars, however they are different from Fenders. When I purchased this G&L, I did play a new Fender 52RI. It was a nice guitar, however the G&L felt more comfortable for me. I especially love the neck and low weight of this guitar. As I am not getting any younger, weight is now an issue (especially after a long gig). I love both Fender and G&L Teles and plan on keeping all of them for a long long time

Made in USA, 22 frets, two-piece swamp ash body, solid maple neck, see-through butterscotch blonde finish, black pickguard, non-locking tuners, two single coils. Looks like a '52 Tele. Very nice, but very basic, (as are all Tele's). I don't have problems muting or getting decent tones out of this Tele; vintage effects were of no concern - the see-through butterscotch was my main concern.

Nonetheless - Tele's are as basic as guitars get. More than a '7' on features would be a joke, so that's what it gets.

Sounds great to me. Sounds great clean, and also has all the bite I could ask for dirty. I think the mission of my guitar is to nail Springsteen tones, which it does very nicely. I haven't gone for the grungy tones so cannot comment... (if I were wanting those, though, I have a McInturff Taurus Sportster with humbuckers that would seem more suited for that task though).

What can I say - looks amazing. Downright staggering. I will drop it a notch in this category since if you really want a '52 Tele, the G&L simply is NOT one, and you can tell at a glance - the headstock shape, the bridge saddles, the logo. But who really cares, right? Anyway... only a 9.

It's a tank.

Haven't needed them.

I wanted one of these in the worst way, after having had an American Tele ripped off. Took the dive and got one used for perhaps not the best deal in the world. I could care less: it totally kicks - GREAT guitar that I'm VERY happy with. My only complaint - which is really slight - is that it doesn't have the whole "Fender" vibe. Like the other reviewer, I don't buy into the "better than Fender" vibe... or the "Fender or bust" vibe either. But the '52 Tele really is one of Fender's pride and joys, and let's face it: this is just G&L's take on that wonderful beast, not an actual true-blue copy of the original.

That's really my only complaint, and for a true player, it isn't worthy of mention.

Anyway... my American Tele was a lot cheaper and got pretty much the same job done, too. For that I'll drop it to a '9' from an otherwise '10': the '52 style will cost you.

Fed up with G&L morons telling us all G&L's are "better" than their Fender counterparts.

THE TRUTH: some G&L's are simply DIFFERENT than their Fender counterparts, while some are WORSE than the exact same model by Fender.

Note: if your new G&L cost you $1200 you can't compare that to a Fender USA standard costing $800. Compare guitars with very closely similar features and at the same price, then you have something to COMPARE.

G&L makes an ASAT Classic with butterscotch blonde color; all coloring and most features on this guitar LOOK identical to the Fender '52 RI Tele; it's obvious the Fender '52 is what this G&L is aimed squarely at competing with.

I own one of these G&L's, and own 3 Fender '52s.

Here's what's the same on both guitars:

- finish, color, wood grain, etc.
- over all "look" of the guitar.

Here's what's different:

- the G&L has modern style tuners, these are smoother than the Fender RI tuners, as are ANY modern tuners. They don't retain the "vintage" look however.

- the G&L has a 6-unit bridge, again loses the "vintage" look but otherwise this should be functionally fine -HOWEVER!- this bridge has horribly sharp edges for the adjusting screws, and this makes it nearly unbearable to palm mute well. I am thinking of sanding mine down -or- just replacing this bridge. This is an unacceptable flaw; this exact flaw also exists on Fenders CHEAP MIM "vintage / 50's" strats which often have overly long height adjustment screws causing the problem --however it's worse on this expensive G&L than it even is on the cheap Fenders.

- G&L of course has a different headstock, this loses the "vintage" look if that matters.

If you are buying a butterscotch blonde colored Telecaster in the first place, then probably these small cosmetic aspects do matter to you.

- the pickups on the G&L are excellent, however they do not sound like the Fenders! They are excellent for clean tones, better so than the Fender '52 pickups. But the '52 pickups are better for all overdrive tones up through heavy distortion. If you want a guitar to play Soundgarden and much of the early 90s Grunge bands' type sound, then get the Fender '52, it EXCELS at that. If you want a guitar that has an excellent clean Telecaster tone, get the G&L or a hoarde of other choices out there. Both guitar's pickups give a warm clean tone, neither are shrill or unpleasant.

- the neck is not anywhere near as fat as the '52 RI, this neck feels very much the same as Fenders slimmer and larger-radius "Player" necks, which are just a tiny bit larger-radius than their standard necks. This neck is okay but really does NOT belong on a Telecaster. I expect a Tele neck to feel fatter than a Strat neck; this one is like a slim Strat neck.



NOTE: I'm no huge fan of Fender, I'm just sick of the lies spewed on the internet to people who haven't played or owned BOTH brands. I rarely see "Fender people" bashing G&L, yet I ALWAYS and CONTINUOUSLY see "G&L people" bashing Fender like it was the antiChrist of guitar companies.
Hey, don't bash Fender the company, go whine and cry at Leo & George, they're the ones who "sold out" LITERALLY; noone forced them to sell their company. All the whiner babies crying "sell out" at every band who makes it onto the radio, yet I've never once seen anyone complain about what Leo Fender, George Fullerton, Fred Gretsch, etc. etc. etc. did -- all persons who literally "sold out" their own namesake companies.

excellent clean tones. Not great at overdrive and less-so with heavy distortion.

these pickups do not sound anything like the Fender '52 RI at all; be aware of that if buying online. They are good pickups however.

fit & finish were excellent, as they've always been on the Fender '52.

The bridge SUCKS, see above comment.

everything appears solid, nothing looks cheap.

Leo and George are passed away.
Are there any reports/articles/interviews of current ownership of the company? are they family members? it would be good to hear what's going on with the company now.

But a well-built guitar is a well-built guitar; you can get that serviced anywhere.

guitar is excellent except the bridge is unacceptable,

the most important thing to note is the pickups and the neck make this guitar VASTLY DIFFERENT than the Fender '52RI which it looks identical to.

Please note: I like this G&L very much and intend to keep it for many years, the only change I will make is the bridge. This gives me a cleaner-sounding alternative to my '52's. But I do prefer the sound of the 52's for most songs, and I always prefer the '52 fat neck, but I can accept the thin neck on this G&L.

I got this for a killer price, it is well worth $800 used and $1100 new, which is the same used/new price on '52 RI's,
just be aware of the differences, don't think this is similar to a Fender '52 just because they made it look almost identical.